Contesting the Nation: Reasonable Accommodation in Rural Quebec

Abstract

In 2007, the village of Hérouxville attracted a significant amount of media attention after adopting a controversial code of conduct for living in this municipality. This code of conduct, commonly referred to as the Hérouxville Standards, constructed the community’s collective identity in ways that were positioned against several “Others,” including women, children and (most notably) immigrants. The construction of “Us” and “Them” evident in the Standards points to ongoing contestations over the definition of nationhood in Quebec. In particular, the Standards reflect a reassertion of exclusive concepts of the nation. As such, the Standards must be read, not as an isolated case, but as part of a larger debate about national identity, immigration and multiculturalism in Quebec.